Ricky Sprague's Blog, page 4
January 26, 2017
Is leftism a cult?
"Saturday Night Live," a TV show devoted ostensibly to humor, parody and satire, devoted about two and a half minutes to a bizarre, cringe-inducing "thank you" to Barack Obama (presumably for being so venal and incompetent that he left the Democrat party in worse shape than ever and got Donald Trump elected as his successor) consisting of two cast members warbling through the classic Lulu song "
January 22, 2017
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
This post reveals major plot points including the ending of the book and the movie Gone Girl. It’s impossible to spoil something that’s already rotten but you’ve been warned.
Depending on what source you believe, women make anywhere from 58% to 64% of all book purchases. Women dominate publishing editorial meetings. This is why books are mostly marketed to women, and why so many bestsellers
Depending on what source you believe, women make anywhere from 58% to 64% of all book purchases. Women dominate publishing editorial meetings. This is why books are mostly marketed to women, and why so many bestsellers
January 18, 2017
New Philip K. Dick novel too absurd to be believed - A blast from the past!
Now that the administration of the venal, incompetent, and morally reprehensible Barack Obama is finally coming to a close, it seemed like a good time to revisit my review of a brand-new Philip K. Dick novel, first published over at When Falls the Coliseum on Sept 17, 2012.
Philip K. Dick was one of the most important science fiction authors of the 20th
century. His novels explored issues of
Philip K. Dick was one of the most important science fiction authors of the 20th
century. His novels explored issues of
January 17, 2017
Will the upcoming DCEU Wonder Woman film suck, or just stink?
Seriously-- how hard is it to make a movie about this Intellectual Property??
According to an unsubstantiated rumor from a third-hand source, the upcoming Wonder Woman film, a major part of the DC Extended Universe film franchise, will be just as good as Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice:
On a recent episode of the Schmoes Know show, it was revealed that Wonder Woman may be a big mess.
According to an unsubstantiated rumor from a third-hand source, the upcoming Wonder Woman film, a major part of the DC Extended Universe film franchise, will be just as good as Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice:
On a recent episode of the Schmoes Know show, it was revealed that Wonder Woman may be a big mess.
January 16, 2017
The brand new Whimsical Doctor Shoe print cover
Whimsical Doctor Shoe, the most brilliant novel ever written, is now available in a beautiful new print edition with a beautiful new "found manuscript" cover designed by me.
"They" say you can't judge a book by it's cover. But if you think this is a compelling cover, then "they" must be wrong, right?
Whimsical Doctor Shoe is available in print and kindle editions from Amazon right this
"They" say you can't judge a book by it's cover. But if you think this is a compelling cover, then "they" must be wrong, right?
Whimsical Doctor Shoe is available in print and kindle editions from Amazon right this
January 8, 2017
Really, seriously, totally Hollywood is staying relevant in the age of Trump!
Hollywood is a bubble. The artisans in charge of caretaking the Intellectual Property that entertains the masses have very little interest in understanding those people. They believe that they are more enlightened than the average person. And they’re proud of it. As George Clooney famously speechified when accepting his Best Supporting Actor Academy Award,
And finally, I would say that, you
And finally, I would say that, you
January 7, 2017
The Babysitter by Andrew Coburn
You can't "spoil" something that's already rotten. That being said, this post contains some specific plot information about the novel discussed.
For about twenty pages or so I thought I was really going to enjoy Andrew Coburn’s novel The Babysitter. It has the feel of a literary novel, something like Tom Perrotta or Jonathan Franzen or Bret Easton Ellis might write. Then it turns from
For about twenty pages or so I thought I was really going to enjoy Andrew Coburn’s novel The Babysitter. It has the feel of a literary novel, something like Tom Perrotta or Jonathan Franzen or Bret Easton Ellis might write. Then it turns from
January 2, 2017
Actors who embody Intellectual Property have no right to protect their likeness
Because of the reliance on existing Intellectual Property to prop up the ailing movie industry, writers are mostly superfluous. Movie scripts today are engineered like Mad-Libs; in fact, story beats are broken down by page number. With a franchise you take Intellectual Property A and put them up against Intellectual Property B, introduce Intellectual Property C in a supporting role with the 
December 31, 2016
Dead Eyes by Stuart Woods
There’s a moment in the thirteenth chapter of Dead Eyes where it looks like the reader is in for the kind of tawdry fun that you get from watching a giallo horror film. The almost completely blind actress Chris Callaway is listening to some books on tape when suddenly the cassette player turns off and her stalker is sitting across from her:
The whisper began, low and sibilant: “
The whisper began, low and sibilant: “
December 29, 2016
Actually, Steve Martin's tribute to his friend Carrie Fisher was absolutely perfect
I never found the “Slave Leia” outfit arousing. This despite the fact I was about nine or so when that particular Star Wars movie was released, and I suppose that all heterosexual boys who liked SF were supposed to fantasize about it. I didn’t. This is mostly because I never found Carrie Fisher to be particularly attractive.Just not really my type. Not only that, I never particularly liked the 
